CAT/OP/CHL/1 traditional knowledge and medicines as an alternative or supplement to the treatments that the health services normally dispense. 64. The Subcommittee noted that the service provided by the psychiatric hospital appeared to be adequate. However, the Subcommittee was concerned to note the lack of any protocol for detecting ill-treatment or torture in cases of involuntary administrative admissions, when patients brought in by police officers, or even by their families, show signs of bruising. The medical service apparently does not take that possibility into account in the case of patients who are often lacking in discernment or understanding of their situation. 65. The Subcommittee is seriously concerned that persons admitted to the hospital for an assessment of their mental competence to stand trial remain institutionalized for more than six months after the completion of the assessment. 66. The Subcommittee recommends that particular attention be devoted to the examination of patients exhibiting injuries and that specialized training be provided in this area. VI. Conditions of detention A. Overpopulation and overcrowding 67. On the basis of interviews with government officials, persons deprived of their liberty and human rights organizations, the Subcommittee has concluded that the existing policy governing the prosecution of criminal offences has contributed significantly to the increase in the prison population. The way in which justice is currently administered has also contributed to overcrowding, particularly since the reform of the criminal justice system was carried out. The reform has streamlined the justice system and permitted a broader range of crimes to be addressed. However, the system suffers from shortcomings in terms of safeguards, the handling of complex crimes and the reduction of prison overcrowding. Moreover, the marked reduction in the ratio of pretrial detainees to the total prison population has been achieved at the cost of a significant increase in the number of persons deprived of their liberty, as shown by the current high rate of incarceration in Chile. This situation heightens the likelihood that members of certain groups (defined in terms of social class, gender, ethnicity and age, among other characteristics) will be subject to criminal prosecution, ill-treatment and torture during arrest and detention, violations of due process and imprisonment. 68. The Subcommittee recommends that modifications be made, as a matter of urgency, in the policy governing criminal prosecution and the administration of criminal justice in order to reduce the number of persons deprived of their liberty and reverse the rise in the prison population, including through the use of alternative measures to detention. The Subcommittee further recommends that these modifications be such as to reduce the heightened risk of detention and vulnerability to ill-treatment in places of detention of the groups that are most at risk in this regard. 69. The Subcommittee is concerned to note that there is overcrowding in the vast majority of places of detention, with, in some cases, as many as three persons being forced to share a mattress. Furthermore, the Subcommittee is concerned about inadequate natural or artificial lighting, insufficient heating and the scarcity of opportunities for inmates to exercise outdoors or engage in any other activity for long periods of time, all of which, taken together, may constitute cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. 70. During its visits, the Subcommittee noted that disparities existed in detention conditions within the same institution. Some persons deprived of their liberty receive differential treatment as a result of orders issued by a court or by the prison officials or by reason of their socioeconomic status or their mid-ranking or senior position in a criminal organization. Such treatment includes being housed in places of detention that are not overcrowded or in individual cells equipped with proper bathrooms and access to gyms, television sets, individual sleeping quarters, a canteen and a living room. These persons are GE.17-07771 11